Uber Hack Prompts Industry Watchdogs to Call for Pause in Operations

NEW YORK , Nov. 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Following the disclosure that over 57 million Uber driver and rider accounts were hacked, exposing sensitive, personal information, the National Limousine Association (NLA) is calling for Uber to halt its operations and on Congress to formally investigate the incident. While the scope of the breach is still not fully known, the NLA warns the public that this information most likely goes well beyond typical credit card exposure seen in many retail hacks.

"Uber knows where you live, work, and eat - all in addition to having your credit cards on file," warned Scott Solombrino, Co-Founder of the NLA. Solombrino continued "hackers may have accessed your trip data, learning your habits and selling this information to the highest bidder for reprehensible purposes. We at the NLA call on Uber to suspend operations, allowing Congress to get a grasp on the full scope of this breach and determine any legal wrongdoings for covering up such an extensive violation of privacy. There is no way to ensure that Americans using this service are not continually being exposed and Uber must be held accountable."

In a year filled with news of catastrophic data breaches, including Equifax among many others, Uber is unique in that it retains location data, in addition to the license numbers and credit cards of its drivers. The NLA stresses that understanding the implications of such a hack requires the intervention of a governing body, that must avow that the service is safe to use before it continues to operate. Additionally, news of Uber's alleged cover up is extremely disturbing, and the pervasive and sustained illegal and unethical practices that are designed to deceive both regulators and the public need to be curbed immediately.